Easter Hope

          Tomorrow is Easter, but my anticipated joy is preceded by sorrow when I watch the world news today. The Mideast has been embroiled in turmoil involving various government troops, rebels, militias, warlords, religious extremists, foreign volunteers, Sunni and Shia Muslims ~ too numerous to mention. Civilians continue to suffer ~ they get slaughtered, kidnapped, raped, robbed, and displaced. I believe this has to be one of the greatest humanitarian crises in history with no end in sight. One headline today: "Iraq Tikrit: looting and lawlessness follow recapture." The picture that accompanies the story shows Iraqi Shia militia, who helped recapture Tikrit from Islamic State, jubilantly displaying the V sign with raised arms. I just wonder what's really there to be happy about. Do all people think this way? Don't people ever feel sorry anymore? I suppose no one expects us to be remorseful nowadays. What is the world coming to? Has it painted itself into a corner? I hope not. The tragedy is that those who do not believe that Christ is the Savior are the ones who need him the most! This is the time to heed the Lord's warning in Mark 4.25: "To the one who has, more will be given; from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away." My fervent hope is that the world will see that hope for all of us is ever present, since Christ is ever present.

Be Extraordinary Now

        Looking back in history, countless humans have come and gone. Where are they now? If we don't do anything different, we'll be like most of them ~ attached to the world, following the world's way, and disappearing into the oblivion. What we should do is something extraordinary. We need to be lifted out of this world, break free of this life, and set our eternal destiny. This is where Christ the Lord comes in. He has already died for our sins and shown us the way, the truth, and the light. There is only one true God and we only have one window in this life to seize him. Do not wait.

Pleasure of Pleasures

        At noon on this Good Friday, I prayed the Stations of the Cross with the congregation at my church. At Station XVI, we recited John 16.22: "I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy away from you." The joy of Christ is indeed our greatest pleasure, which the world cannot give. Once you have this joy, no pleasure of the world will ever be able to satisfy you, plus you'll be able to discern if a pleasure is beneficial or harmful to you. 

The All-Knowing Lord

        I am happy that Jesus knows all about me so that he may mold and shape me as he sees fit, lift me up when I am down, strengthen me when I am weak, and shield me from all evil. 

The Offering Way

        Here is a way to help free yourself to get through life. Offer God your every thought, word, and action. Whatever you must do, pleasant or otherwise, offer it to God. Offer yourself to him as well. In other words, do everything unselfishly for his sake. This will not only free you from being burdened, but also turn you into a saint.  

Sinking in Sin

        It is Holy Thursday. At Evening Mass of the Last Supper, the washing of disciples' feet will be reenacted to show that we are to do for others as the Lord has done for us. This morning the Lord made me see how beautiful the world would be if we didn't sin, for it is sin that has caused today's miseries, pains, and sufferings among us all. The need for surrendering to Christ is greater than ever; would that the whole world senses this urgency! 

Beautiful Way of Finding God

        Read the Gospels and meditate upon the Lord. Let what you read speak directly to your heart. See how amazing, how beautiful, how refreshing he is. Marvel at his intentions, words, and deeds. Then believe in him, follow him, fall in love and give yourself entirely to him. You now know you've been chosen and are on your way home to him, your Father and creator. Peace, joy, and freedom sustain you the rest of your life on earth.

Need for Prayer

        We need to pray to God to praise him, thank him, to show that we love and trust him. Another reason more practical is this. Since everything works through God and nothing can happen without his knowledge and permission, to make good things happen, we need to go straight to his heart with our requests, and prayer directly links our heart to his.

First Things First

        Before we ask the Lord to have mercy on us, we should repent our sins and be ready to be merciful to our brothers and sisters.       

         Before we ask the Lord to grant us peace, we must be willing to do his will.

Following God's Example

        This morning's Entrance Antiphon at Mass taken from Philippians 2 reads: At the name of Jesus, every knee should bend, of those in heaven and on the earth and under the earth, for the Lord became obedient to death, death on a cross: therefore Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. This is such a profound statement. We have the Lord obedient to himself for his own glory! It shows that God will go to any length to accomplish what his love demands. Naturally, he alone deserves to be glorified. What's proper for us to follow is to also let love motivate everything we do to the glory of God our Father.

Sins, Premeditated vs Spontaneous

        In the first part of today's Gospel reading from John 13, Judas' betrayal of Jesus is announced. At the Last Supper, when the disciples asked who the betrayer is, Jesus dipped and handed a morsel to Judas to indicate that he would be the one. In verse 27, we heard read, "After Judas took the morsel, Satan entered him." Satan becomes a partner in crime when one premeditates committing a sin, and that sin will be serious.       

        In the last part of the Gospel, Peter's denial of Jesus is predicted. Jesus told Peter that the cock would not crow before he denied him three times. Peter's denial stemmed from fear and came out spontaneously, not premeditated as in Judas' case, and he repented right afterwards. This is the difference. The goal of union of God is that we don't even commit spontaneous sins.  

Stunning Truth

        Today's Communion antiphon based upon Romans 8.32: God did not spare his own son, but handed him over for us all. This incredible truth still amazes me today. Let it wipe out any negative thoughts or feelings you might have toward God.

Where Heaven Is

        Without God, we are on our own. If someone hits me, naturally I want to hit him back. Then we go after each other perpetually with attacks and counterattacks. This is our world today. With the God of Christ, we get clear guidance to follow. Love becomes our prime motive ~ the only way to break the vicious cycle we are in. Naturally, we must be prepared to suffer if necessary. This is made possible by our God-given faith and vision of everlasting life. Since heaven is where God dwells, there is no heaven on earth except in the hearts of those who are with Christ.

Whom to Pray For

        You know people who turn you off, make you angry, or are plain unattractive. They are the ones whom you want to avoid, love to hate, or feel are hopeless cases or losers. Prayers are called for. Pray first for yourself, then pray for God's blessing on every one of them from your heart. And Jesus in turn will bless you.

Final Judgment Imminent

        It's knowing that we'll be judged by God one day that matters, not when it'll happen. In truth, God already knows everything we've done so far; only the time of pronouncing our sentence has not arrived yet. 

Good and Evil in Contrast

        Holy Week has begun. In today's Gospel reading of John 12.1-11 at morning Mass, I saw the sharp contrast between good and evil. Six days before Passover, Jesus came to the house of Lazarus whom he had raised from the dead. Mary, the sister of Lazarus, anointed the feet of Jesus with a liter of costly perfumed oil. Judas the Iscariot questioned why the oil was not sold and given to the poor. He said it because he held the money bag and used to steal the contributions. Jesus merely said, "Leave her alone. Let her keep this for the day of my burial. You always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me." What's good about Jesus was that he knew well that Judas was going to betray him, yet God's will must be done and he never reproached or tried to stop him. By contrast, the chief priests were so bad that they not only plotted to kill Jesus, but also Lazarus just because the fact that he was raised from the dead by Jesus had led many to turn away and believe in Jesus. The world is still the same today.

Tragic Reality

          One may not believe that there is a personal, loving God, but everyone knows that he is a sinner and would need help to get out of that state. Many have found Christ to be the perfect solution for them. We only need to humble ourselves and be receptive to the gospel ~ the process can't be simpler. God has made it easy, yet we still remain closed, not willing to yield. It's taking the easy way out only to find out that it's no way out!

Linked to God

        Communion thoughts. It is still incredible to me that in receiving the Lord in the Holy Eucharist, the finite and the infinite merge together physically and spiritually into one. This is made possible only through God's mercy and love. It's so very, very special!